The key to killing pests can be found inside spider venom and at Vestron they are tapping that mechanism to create what they believe will be a pesticide that does not do the damage created by today's peticides. Kim North Shine talks to Dr. John Sorenson.
At Edgewater Automation every job is unique and most of then are secret. Kim North Shine reports that's the St. Joseph company's edge.
Funerals have entered the digital age. Writer Kim North Shine talks to the innovators behind the growing network of Life Story Funeral Homes that have modernized the memorial.
Research into cell and tissue culture technology got a boost when the Biosciences Research and Commercialization Center at Western Michigan University invested $250,000 in Kalamazoo-based RealBio Technology Inc.RealBio, founded in 2009, has three full-time employees and six part-time employees working at its headquarters at the Southwest Michigan Innovation Center at Western Michigan University.BRCC invests in growing early stage companies in Michigan and is located in the Western Michigan University Business Technology and Research Park. RealBio is commercializing cell and tissue growth systems and developing a new generation of three-dimensional cell culture technology, which is exclusively licensed by the company. It has a patent pending.The RealBio Culture System enables researchers to study the growth of human primary cells and tissues over a long period of time. It also will allow access to a steady supply of stem cells for research purposes and for the formation of human tissue for in-vitro toxicology.RealBio President and CEO Paul Neeb says this is the first phase of funding in building toward the release of RealBio's cell and tissue collection tools, and that another half-dozen or so employees will be hired within the next year as the product comes to market.RealBio is part of the Southwest Michigan First Life Sciences Fund portfolio and has received financial and logistical support from the fund as part of a regional effort to foster further medical research, generate jobs, stimulate economic development and create wealth in Southwest Michigan. Writer: Kim North Shine Source: Southwest Michigan First
Southwest Michigan businesses, residents, foundations, schools and others put their money behind a new fundraising partnership meant to bring additional services to people needing help.The Lifeline Initiative grew out of a partnership between Kalamazoo Community Foundation and the Greater Kalamazoo United Way.Leaders of the two organizations conceived the initiative in response to the economic downturn. Through the initiative, about $4 million dollars over the next three years will be invested in local programs that address joblessness, emergency food assistance, emergency shelter and transitional housing, and health care access.Over the last eight months, more than $2.7 million was raised."Kalamazoo's charitable spirit is alive and well. ... People and organizations that care deeply about our community have stepped forward to support this effort...," Juan Olivarez, president and CEO of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, says.His comments came during a Feb. 9 announcement of the partnership and its outcome.The Lifeline Initiative is described as a "unique and targeted collaborative fundraising effort" that took care not to adversely affect other charities."Our board leadership wholeheartedly endorsed the partnership between the Community Foundation and the United Way. We are proud to partner with the Community Foundation, and we are pleased to be a part of this unique and powerful response to help address the increased needs of our community," says Mike Larson, president and CEO, Greater Kalamazoo United Way."These funds will have an immediate impact and will play a major role in helping to address the increased basic a human needs we have witnessed in our area. While we applaud and thank both boards for their vision and leadership, the true credit for this effort goes to the incredibly generous donors who saw the need, and responded with tremendous compassion and generosity."The effort won't end here, they say.Community Foundation and United Way officials expect additional donations from donors who have expressed an interest in long-term support. This is only first grant-making cycle for community investments from the Lifeline Fund, they say. Writer: Kim North Shine Source: Community Foundation, Greater Kalamazoo United Way
A Japanese battery producer has picked Battle Creek for its first foray into the U.S. market. It plans to create 50 to 60 new jobs, a $70 million "green tech" manufacturing plant and then some. A plan to produce lithium-ion vehicle batteries at a soon-to-be-built facility in Battle Creek became official Feb. 16 when Toda America Inc., a subsidiary of Toda Kogyo Corp. in Japan, finalized a $35 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy, letting locals, Michigan and the U.S. play a part in the electrification of cars and other vehicles. Toda will match the $35 million award from the DOE in order to build the plant at Battle Creek's Fort Custer Industrial Park, a site where pre-construction preps such as environmental remediation have already begun. "The Toda project contributes triple benefits of strategic acceleration of U.S. electrification of vehicles, immediate creation of green tech jobs, and redevelopment and reuse of existing industrial land in support of urban revitalization," says David Han, president of venture development firm Turtlerock Greentech, and a consultant to Toda. Construction on Phase 1 of the Toda plant will begin in one to two months and the plant will begin operating by February 2011. The plant will manufacture cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries for electric and non-electric vehicles. It is currently a leading manufacturer of cell phone and computer batteries. The company, which is working with the Department of Energy as part of the Reinvestment and Recovery Act, is receiving other economic development incentives from the City of Battle Creek and the State of Michigan. Both worked to convince Toda to choose Battle Creek over several other cities. The plant will expand in phases through 2013, eventually producing 4,000 tons of finished products each year at a total sales volume of about $130 million. The Michigan Department of Economic Development says 50 to 60 direct new jobs will be created at the plant and up to 148 new jobs, including 91 indirect jobs, will result from the construction and operation of the plant. "This is a critical step for Toda Kogyo Group in our quest to maintain our global leadership as the premier supply chain partner to both battery and electric vehicle manufacturers around the world," Junichi Nakano, President and CEO of Toda America, said in a statement released last week. Writer: Kim North Shine Source: PRNewswire
Our Sponsors
Our Media Partners
